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Every man in the room turns to look at me. I understand what they are doing. They've picked up on the hidden cues that come when I'm around Carson. I think they must have been there from the beginning even if I did try to fight them and keep them hidden. They're all asking if I am alright with this plan because it pulls Carson into all of this. Fully in. Right now there's a chance I could send her away and she would never have to deal with any of this. There's a chance we'll colonize Mars in the next few months, but I wouldn't take those chances any more than I would on me sending her away from me.
They tried to kill her - for nothing more than her house's location. If they found out we knew and I had sent her away she would be in more danger than if she were right by my side. At least by my side, I can be certain that she is safe and alive. Given all that, I make my decision and nod my head.
"Fuck off!" Four pairs of eyebrows rise skyward at my little neighbor's outburst. "Fuck off hard!"
This is a side of her I've not seen. I've seen cute and peppy but angry and pissed is a side I find just as inviting as her peppy side.
"And while you are at it - get out of my goddamn house!"
I take her by the elbow and step to the side where we can have a word in semi-private. "Look, men came to try to use your house. They don't care if you were hurt or dead." She won't meet my eyes so I go for the big guns, "Or if Jack gets hurt in the process."
The mention of Jack has her eyes coming back to mine, a look of worry and fear in the swirling depths now. I don't give her time to try to think of a better way and that may make me a son of a bitch but I'm sure no one will be able to protect her better than I can.
"We have to get rid of these bodies so we can pull this off. It's the only way to keep Jack - and you - safe!"
Her shoulders sag. "Can I...can I get some stuff out?" Willing to do anything for her little guy, she's made her mind up.
"Very little - we have to make it look real." I step in closer so I can shield her from the others in the room. "But it wouldn't be out of place for you to have brought some things over to my house either."
She nods, back to not looking at me, but this time she’s not looking at anyone in the room and I understand why. She's struggling to get a hold of her emotions. I help her find a small box so she can shove some of her prized possessions into it, awards, flash drives, a few clothes, and then I take her by the hand and lead her out of her house. It will be the last time she ever leaves this house. The last time she ever sees the comforting sight of her sofa, or realizes her bedroom is right above her when she walks in. It might be the last time she walks through the door to a house of just her own but not the last time she has all of that.
I brought this to her door - so to speak. It will be my job to make sure she has all of it again...one day...when things settle down. Then I'll give her more than she could ever hope for. More than four walls and a roof. I'll show her what the word home can really mean when it's shared between two people.
8
____________
Carson
I wanted to find out what my neighbor's house looked like on the inside. I didn't think this was how it was going to happen. I was just being nosey really. Now, I'm sitting on a plush couch waiting for Ezra - his name is Ezra - to come back to me.
I'm not upset about all the death. I don't know what that says about me. Probably nothing good. I'm more upset about losing my house. He comes back in with one of his friends and comes straight to the couch.
"We need to move to the back of the house."
I nod. What the hell else am I going to do? Say no. Risk my little man getting caught up in all of this nastiness. I look the new guy up and down. He doesn't look like a guy who would be in a special forces unit. He's wiry and smiles too much and too often. It's he who counts down. When he reaches one the ground shakes and the sound of glass shattering rushes throughout the house.
A whimper breaks out of me when the loud blast echoes through the night. Arms wrap around me and pull me close. Tears have started running down my cheeks. I hate crying. I hate other people seeing me cry. I hate showing this kind of weakness to anyone, even ones I'm close to, so this is especially hard given that chaos is pulling everyone in close to see my tears over my loss.
I didn’t think I would be able to feel the shockwave through the floor but I did. It reached out like it might be trying to grab onto me and take me with it. The sound is so loud that I temporarily lose my hearing as I watch Ezra's eyes widen and he swings a hard look over at the guy who was counting down...who looks just as shocked as we are.
"What the hell? How much did you use?"
It sounds like he is talking through a drum or from a far-off place. I would laugh but there is nothing funny about this. A loud crash echoes through the house and things start falling on the roof above us.
"What the fuck?!"
The guy goes running to the front and comes back not seconds later. "Water heater."
"Water fucking heater?"
"It's your new lawn ornament. Sorry about that."
Chaos is the right word for what’s happening. I don't remember walking out of the house but that’s where a young-looking police officer comes to talk to me and Ezra. There are so many people and they are everywhere and I'm still just wearing a shirt. Although I did get to put panties on at the insistence of Ezra.
"So tell me again ma'am where you where when this happened."
"I...was um, with him!"
